Confederate Army Colonel Robert W. Harper's Frock Coat

Object Details

wearer

Harper, Robert W.

Description

This frock coat was worn by Confederate Army Infantry Colonel Robert W. Harper. Double breasted gray heather wool frock coat with two rows of seven large gilt infantry buttons with the raised letter "I" on the face down the front, two at the back waist, one at the bottom of each pocket opening on the rear skirt, and three smaller general service eagle buttons on each cuff. The bottom right button on the right front row is detached from its location and is tied to the top buttonhole with string. The back of the buttons read, "Halfmann & Taylor Montgomery." Both sides of the breast of the coat have button holes. There is a hook and eye closure at the collar. The collar and cuffs are faced with bright blue wool. The facing on the cuffs forms an inverted "V". Above the cuff there is a triple row of 1/8" gold braided metallic lace, called an Austrian knot, sewed on with a single row of gold thread. The gold tape also lines the cuff. The collar has three large five-point gold stars on each side which are woven onto the collar facing with thick metallic thread. There is a small slit pocket on the right front of the jacket above the waist. The buttonhole flaps and front of the skirt are piped with blue wool. The coat is fully lined. The button flaps and the inside of the collar are lined with blue wool. The sleeves are fully lined with cotton twill. The rest of the lining is a dark brownish green cotton. The chest, shoulder, and underarm are lightly padded and quilted. There is a slit breast pocket on the inside left. There is a deep pocket in each coattail in between the coat and the lining. There is a loop of brownish green cotton at the inside back collar.

Location

Currently not on view

associated date

1861-1865

ID Number

AF.42577

catalog number

42577

accession number

163704

Object Name

coat

Other Terms

coat; Man; CSA, Army; Infantry; Colonel; Officer; Service; Dress

Physical Description

grey (overall color)

wool (overall material)

gold (buttons material)

gold braid (sleeve braid material)

blue (facings color)

Measurements

overall: 40 1/2 in x 17 in; 102.87 cm x 43.18 cm

overall (padded): 39 in x 18 in x 3 in; 99.06 cm x 45.72 cm x 7.62 cm

See more items in

Military and Society: Armed Forces History, Military

Civil War

Military

Military Uniforms

Civil War Uniforms

National Museum of American History

related event

Civil War

Record ID

nmah_446364

Metadata Usage (text)

CC0

GUID (Link to Original Record)

https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ng49ca746ac-0b1c-704b-e053-15f76fa0b4fa